“Being the defending champion keeps us on our toes,” Washle said. “Every team is pumped to play us because we have everything to lose.

“All the teams we play aspire to be in our position, so we have to work hard to stay there.”

Blaine, a four-year letterman, was her division’s Player of the Year last season.

Her road to prominence began as a freshman, two years after that magical 2008 season.

“I came into a program that was already strong,” Blaine said. “All I had to do was help keep it that way. There was some pressure to do well, to keep performing, but that was the experience that I needed.”

Whittier Christian (23-6 at press time) lost its first match this fall. It was the first time that had happened since 2007.

Hunter cited an apathetic attitude. The team captains agreed.

“We started this season thinking that it’d be easy to win CIF again,” Washle admitted. “I don’t think we realized how hard it was to get there in the first place.

“Now we know that last season was a really good season, and that it’ll take hard work to get there again.”

The Heralds, ranked No. 1 in their division, are expected to wear the crown again.

Hunter and his senior-laden team know this, and they couldn’t be happier.

“Playing in the state tournament last season gave us more experience,” Wolfe said. “It was something different. We had to play at a higher level than we had to play at for most of the year.

Brian Whitehead is a staff reporter at the Orange County Register. Since graduating from Cal State Fullerton in 2010, he has covered high school and college sports and the cities of Buena Park, Fullerton and La Palma.

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